


Dogs & Dragons

by UntappedChaos



Series: Pulling Strings [2]
Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-21
Updated: 2018-07-29
Packaged: 2019-06-18 01:00:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15474030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UntappedChaos/pseuds/UntappedChaos
Summary: Several months after being transported deep into legend, Kagome finds herself facing the first twist in her new fate — saving Touga meant starting a war with the Dragon Clans.





	1. War & Pieces

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so a few notes ahead! Old chapter is very old. Veeery old. I am sorry. Some basic edits were performed as eye-saving measures. ;v;
> 
> For anyone finding this story first, it is the second arc in **Pulling Strings** an over-sized Inuyasha fanfiction that I've been poking at for a very long time. TTvTT I will try to update more consistently in the future now that I've got a better system for managing this story.  <3
> 
> 1 **Hyakki Yakou** - 百鬼夜行; lit. "Night Parade of One Hundred Demons"  
> 2 **Jyaki**  - 邪気, じゃき, "evil energy"  
> 3 **Dokkasou**  - 毒華爪, Toxic Luster Claw

 

 

When Kagome finally became aware of herself, she was inside of that room again.  She carefully observed the smells around her; the less familiar scents were probably the chambermaids, but once again she could smell Souki in this room and on her clothes.

The man must have an alarm somewhere in his head to always know when it was time to carry her back to this room.  Rather, it was probably _her_ room, since they kept leaving her here; if she were honest, Kagome hadn’t thought even once about where she would stay since the warp.   The curiosity now was how she was being treated—like royalty, even though she was about as royal as the mouser in the servant’s kitchens.   _They keep saying dog demons are rare, though…   So what, am I being adopted?_

The thought was absurd, and she laughed a little at her own audacity before getting up, shaking her clothes out and straightening them.  After a bit of searching, she managed to come up with a simple mottled-blue kimono out of the drawers; deciding it was the simplest thing she’d find, she tossed it over her arm and headed toward the bathhouse.

The moon was high overhead, but there were still plenty of demons bustling around within the castle’s walls.  She avoided as many as she could for the sake of keeping things simple.  If they knew she was headed for the bathhouse, undoubtedly someone would try to follow her to wash her back or some other such nonsense.  She entered the building silently, again playing her “game,” and shed her clothes quickly to place them in the basket where the servants would gather them for washing.

She supposed they knew by scent whose was whose…but she vaguely disliked the idea of having her “scent” become so important.  It had been odd enough with Inuyasha sniffing around her…a whole palace of sharp noses was too much to think about.

Yes, she would definitely put off those thoughts for now.

The hot water was an immediate relief to muscles she hadn’t even realized were stiff; her lower back spasmed before relaxing, her calves and ankles following suit as the tension ebbed away with the rising steam.  The mild ripple of the water bobbled the dead Shikon against her chest, the bloody red fading to sickly brown in the foggy waters.

She’d walked a tightrope, Midoriko said.  She’d managed to make a wish like she had only because of the way she said it.

_Consequences be damned.  I’m glad_ , she thought vaguely, letting her eyes slide closed for a bit.  _If I can change the future for everyone by doing this, it’ll be worth it._

Her heart was warring with itself, though; it complained and railed against the fact that she had sacrificed her chance to be with Inuyasha after all the grief she went through to get him to love her back.  Even if the future ‘Kagome’ was able to win his heart and have a happily ever after, she would be stuck watching from afar at best.  She would be alone, watching the man she loved love others when he had vowed to be hers—worse, she was losing out to herself in the beautiful, rose-colored future she wanted to create for them.

Damn, time paradoxes sucked.  Despite it, Kagome refused to cry.  She was close, but she wouldn’t.  She would be strong, kick ass, and be the damn superhero that she always needed.  Her own guardian angel.

Instead of grieving over Inuyasha, she would make a plan.

It started the very next day, with attempting to trail her “designated companion,” Sesshoumaru.  She did her level best to keep him in sight at a distance until he finally snapped that her attempts at hiding were utterly irritating and that she was to desist immediately and walk beside him like a proper lady should.  Kagome couldn’t decide if that was victory or defeat, since walking anywhere near him gave her the chills; she crossed her fingers that eventually they would get at least moderately comfortable in each other’s presence.  Whether watching him train his combat skills (and occasionally receiving a lesson) or attempting to comprehend his extremely tedious mountains of paperwork, the two were nearly always together.

She made sure of it.

“The Plan” was a little like “The Game.”  She lost if she thought about it; it gave her complicated feelings that nearly always made themselves apparent to everyone else.  Souki, ridiculously perceptive as he was, was especially hard to fool.  If it happened near baby Inuyasha, he seemed to know immediately that something was wrong and would react accordingly, often with various volumes of crying.  Touga was tactful enough to ignore it, and Izayoi was…human.  Humans, as Kagome was beginning to learn, really were just that easy to fool.  With their eyes duller, their noses less sensitive, their hearing weak…humans just missed half the signals that were there.  Body language…body language they could catch, sure.  However, like every other human on earth, the priestess never understood the logic of “scenting lies” until she had the opportunity to apply it.  Lies were becoming essential though; even if she somehow, _somehow_ , managed to convey her words, having the surrounding youkai believe her would be a trick on its own.  Would it even be safe?  Wouldn’t space-time paradoxes ensue and cause the universe to end or something?

Not that she hadn’t already screwed around with Time once mind you, but this time she knew what she was doing; this time, she was doing it on purpose.

Kagome could hear Souki flinch on the other side of the room as she let her forehead crack against the desk, eyes crossing until the characters on the parchment blurred.  Perceptive as always, he asked, “I don’t suppose it’s because you’ve given up on reading that.”

***

Summer was in full swing; the cicadas sang in the afternoons, the heat sizzled on the outside walks and water evaporated like mad from the cisterns.  Kagome despised the heat with a passion and was quite fortunate—or dearly unfortunate—when the temperature in Touga’s office dropped below zero in an instant.

“Ryuukotsusei’s heir, Ryuuhokuson, has crossed the borders milord.  They’re coming for the West.”

The messenger was admirable for not squeaking at the deadly aura that seemed to burst off his lord in sparks, burning through the air like a cold fire.  From her usual place at the window, Kagome shivered despite the sweltering heat of midsummer just beyond the warped glass.  Touga’s eyes sharpened with deadly intent, his focus left hanging in the room as he reigned in his temper.  Souki tensed, forcing himself to turn to his lord and commander and anticipate his orders.

This was war.  A foolish pup, mad with grief or power one—perhaps even both—had decided to snap at the heels of the western Dog General.  If it were only one foolish pup and not a whole territory, it might have been different.  If it were a duel between men and not the threat of an army, things could have been settled much more simply.  Kagome trailed her blue eyes over the figure of the male that should not have lived and admitted quietly to herself that she was already reshaping history.  Because Touga was alive, Ryuukotsusei’s heir was coming for revenge.  Because he lived, there would be a war and countless lives would be lost.  She didn’t regret it—in the past six months, seeing Touga dote on Inuyasha and scold Sesshoumaru and cherish Izayoi had more than made her decision worth it, just as she knew it would.  Even if she had acknowledged in that first hour that she was 200-some-odd years further into the past, her choice to save him certainly wouldn’t have changed.  If she had to choose between thousands of demons and Touga, she would.

She would kill the whole army by herself if it would keep Touga alive.  She found the thought of bloodshed for his sake didn’t disagree with her in the least.

He sent the messenger out with a sharp order, voice tight with restraint.  The whole room focused on him, intent on his instructions.  Sesshoumaru, who had been deeply involved in his own work, watched his father with impatience Kagome had never seen from him before.  Souki went completely rigid in an effort not to fidget.  Despite the seriousness of the situation, the miko’s thoughts briefly turned to how horribly inappropriate her cheerful, pink yukata was for the occasion.

“Souki.  Ready my troops.  I want every soldier’s pack prepared to pick up the moment I give notice.”

The horse demon’s pale green eyes glittered with a tense anticipation.  It was the only confirmation he gave his lord as he turned and strode from the room.  His youki was a near-tangible, wild force even from a distance; it boiled with eagerness, a hint of bloodlust, and just the barest fraction of trepidation that you wouldn’t notice unless you looked for it.

Touga turned his eyes on his eldest, a hard glint there as he growled, “You are to take them their last warning, my son.  Leave as soon as you can.  Keep an eye on them if they refuse; if they accept, return as quickly as possible.  Understood?”

Sesshoumaru offered a brief, serious nod before heading for the door.  Kagome moved to follow him, but was stopped when the Dog Lord called her name.

“Stay behind this time, Kou-hime,” he murmured quietly as the door slid shut.  The affectionate way he called her, she imagined, was much like her father would have called her if he had lived; it didn’t stop her from giving him a disbelieving look.  He was sending Sesshoumaru alone on a mission for diplomacy, and telling her to stay behind.  She wanted to tell him there was a limit to being ridiculous.  In fact, shouldn’t he send Souki instead of Sesshoumaru?  He offered her a weak smile, softening for a bit.  “I know my son’s weaknesses, but I cannot in good faith send a young lady to the battlefield.  Slaying a human and warring against youkai are two entirely different matters.”

_And I’ve done both_ , she wanted to say.  _I’ve been fighting youkai for over a year already — in a much more vulnerable state, since I was human, and by a much more concentrated attacker._   Kagome felt her eyes narrowing, her temper rising as she struggled with the desire to make herself understood.  A war?  She’d waged one with much less than an army on her side.  She wanted to laugh in the face of this danger; she didn’t even feel properly threatened yet.

She straightened, shoulders stiff, and glowered at Touga pointedly before storming out of his office without any acknowledgment of his orders.

Within the hour, she watched Sesshoumaru fly off on Ah-Un in an easterly direction.  After following him so faithfully for so long, it rankled to see him riding off free-as-you-please to a mission that she knew would be pointless.  In fact, even from an alternate future, she could see that this was a splendidly bad idea and he would sure as hell make the situation worse than it already was.  It was probably a miraculously innate ability of both sons to rub salt into already festering wounds.  Kagome was completely convinced of it.

In order to sulk in a way that at least _someone_ would appreciate, she stalked down the halls toward the barracks, intent on finding Souki.  For a man that had been so rude to her in the first place, he had an amazingly good lock on the things she wanted to say.  He didn’t quite read minds, but she could certainly make him understand what she was thinking much more easily than anyone else.  With a clear amount of vile regret, she wished that Goshinki was in the employ of the West; he could read minds, and despite the sheer paranoia she would feel in his presence, she could have at least voiced (through him) all her reasons and frustrations.

Then again, it would’ve been horribly awkward (him trying to kill herself and Inuyasha aside) to know that Inuyasha would one day kill him and Sesshoumaru would use his fangs to forge a bloodthirsty, possession-prone sword.  Horribly awkward indeed.

Souki, true to form, was ordering his men and the servants this way and that with the shortest, most self-explanatory sentences he could manage.  He would point at a woman and say, “Water, dammit!” and off she would scuttle to fill every single canteen in the outfit.  In all honesty, Kagome liked that about him.  He could make the same curse mean three things to three different people and everyone understood.  She had every intention to put Inuyasha in his care for swordsmanship training, because at least then his filthy mouth would have extremely well-understood meaning.  The ill niggling in the back of her mind about Souki’s future was worth filing away; he was a powerful demon, and despite their travels, she and the gang had never met him.  It didn’t bode well, and that was all the hint she needed to keep a careful eye on him.

At some point, he realized she was present.  With a soft “shit,” the officer at his side took over command and allowed his superior to leave.

“Kou-hime?  Is there something you need?” he asked, neither politely nor gently; his personality remained intact, including the abrasive side that didn’t know how to deal with her.  All her frustrations building to a nice height, Kagome pursed her lips and lifted her hands, plaintively clawing at the air and gritting her teeth before releasing a sigh of aggravation and hanging her head.  “I see.”

She looked up at him, quirking a brow.  _**Do** you now?_

He offered a dry quirk of the lips.  “I’m afraid that I can’t do anything about your frustrations.”

_You **could** do something about them, you just **won’t**_ , she thought at him; if this were Inuyasha and she had her voice, she would be nagging for the sake of nagging already.  It was like trying to scream at the top of your lungs in frustration to feel better; in her case, lack of voice prevented the satisfaction that usually came with it.  _Damn, I want some rosary beads on these guys right now_.  A giant ‘SIT’ for the whole lot of them would have gone a long way to improve her mood, but without a voice, it wouldn’t work anyway.

“Please find a constructive way to vent yourself, milady.  I must see to my Lord’s orders.”

Constructive?  Fine.  Constructive she could do.

Without ceremony or warning, Kagome proceeded to deck the general across the back of his head.  It only made him stumble, but several workers turned to watch in alarm.  Souki’s eyes met hers in bemused shock.

Kagome felt much better, and wandered back into the castle without waiting to reap whatever other reaction might have ensued.

The waiting that followed the incident was torture.  Even if they only waited three days, it was miserable; the tension in the castle was so thick that Izayoi and Inuyasha had remained in Touga’s room the last two days, hoping to escape the choking pressure.  When the fourth evening passed and there still wasn’t any news from Sesshoumaru, the Dog General donned his armor and the three Great Swords and prepared to lead his army to war.

The organized confusion was an interesting change.  Kagome discretely wandered through the soldiers as they moved to their ranks, their companies, and further prepared for any strategy their lord demanded of them.  They were quiet; even their armor was quiet, the strong hides and soft leathers and hard bones giving off a muted clamor that was much easier on the ears than the squeaking and clanking of metal.  Their preparations were notably quiet even with demon ears, which surprised her.  A glance down at her simple kimono made her feel underdressed somehow, what with all the elegant, beautiful, at times even wondrously colorful and intricate armor all around.  Souki, who normally dressed in simple things despite his station, was dressed in deep blue and black, the hard bone of his breastplate draped with maille of gold and crimson scales.  The beauty of youkai males like he and his master—and Sesshoumaru, now that she recalled the sight of him—was nearly appalling.  She felt like she was losing out to the men, and that was very aggravating as a woman.

_Never mind their battle prowess; how do they keep their hair **that** perfect?_

She let the thought amuse her as she stroked the nose of a feral horse demon, getting close to his neck and holding him a little back from the others.  Lord Touga had once again reiterated his demand for her to remain in the castle, but Kagome refused to let that deter her.  She’d saved his life once from the claws of a dragon.  She would damn well make sure it didn’t go to waste.

Maybe she was being overcautious, but the new-turned demoness felt the distinct need to ensure that Touga’s life would not be lost.  The universe might be out for him now or something!  It wasn’t a risk she was willing to take—not this early in the game.

Seven months of borrowed time?  Hell no.  She’d make sure he lived the next two centuries.  The next seven centuries.  She would make sure that he, his progeny, their progeny, and every generation after knew her might.  She would defy time, fate, universe, gods, whatever the hell it took.

Ah, but maybe she was just being stubborn and drawing on her inner drama queen.  That was a possibility, too.

He stood now, silver hair glinting in the rising moon, at the head of their procession.  His gold eyes roamed their ranks, and she subtly shifted behind her steed to prevent him from noticing her.  In a moment—a split second, the length of time it took a bubble to pop and dissipate—his eyes flickered red and a great dog nearly as large as the castle itself appeared in the sky, paws buoyed up on clouds of youki.  He lifted his head and let off a deafening howl, a voice that sent shivers down her spine and left goose bumps covering her skin from ear to toe, her heart seizing with excitement and what she could now recognize as bloodlust.

She was part of a for-real _hyakki yakou_ 1.  How awesome was that?

The roar that went up from the soldiers was a stark contrast against their previous uncanny quiet.  It was a battle cry, a call for victory.  It sang in her blood so strongly that without thinking she leaned back and raised her eyes to the moon, and in her ears she could hear the echo of a long, high howl that could only be hers.  The animal in her wanted it to be heard, even though the logic that kept her sentient knew it would not be.

With that cry, they pursued their leader out the gates.  On her mount, Kagome followed; the deadly surroundings were giving her beastly, pleasing feelings.  It was a hunt.  It was a full-scale hunt, the likes of which she had yet to experience.  This wasn’t nice, polite youkai society that could nearly pass for being human.  This was the blood rush and death lust, the beast and bane of humans.  This was the ghostly parade that left a sizzling and eerie aura in its wake, path lit with the menacing and cool light of foxfire as they set a sweet, brisk pace that let them taste anticipation while reserving their strength.  It promised that, with dawn, there would be no place for their prey to run and hide.

There wasn’t a single human on earth, she believed, that had ever felt such blood-boiling pleasure as this.

More so than she had originally thought, Kagome decided she would definitely get used to being a demon.  The things that had changed were never necessarily good or bad, only different; her initial trepidation toward those changes had almost completely worn off now.  New senses were awesome.  This rush to her head, her pounding heart in the surrounding feel of burgeoning power…it was like the first time she got a taste of her true abilities as a priestess.

Ah, the head rush.  She was getting high on this.  Hopefully adrenaline highs this drastic didn’t have hangovers to follow. 

Speaking of hangovers…

Kagome’s high dissipated a little as she considered what exactly she was doing.  She was going to war.  That didn’t bother her; neither did the killing because hey, let’s face it, she did plenty of it in the Warring States era.  Plenty, and a little too much for her then-human self to care for in fact.  What suddenly came to her attention was not that she was going to war, but that she didn’t know how to fight it.

Priestess powers she knew.  Archery she could do.  However, there wasn’t such a thing as a youkai archer because if they were going to fight with projectiles, fact of life, they usually came equipped with their own.  Taking stock of her person, Kagome listed her possibilities.  Fangs, claws…and that was her list.  Shit.  Even youkai had to train to get used to their powers, and there was no way in hell she was going to chew her way through the enemy like an overgrown puppy.

There was a nudge at the edge of her consciousness, but she ignored it in favor of chasing her thoughts around in circles.  This was something Sesshoumaru had been remiss in teaching her…though all things considered, he probably didn’t realize she even needed to be taught.

_How old was Inuyasha in the next nearest future?  Around 200 years old, right?_ she asked herself, clawing for the memory of their bout with Sou’unga.  Full-fledged youkai probably aged even more slowly.  That considered, she probably looked centuries old to them when she wasn’t even into her second decade yet.  _Overgrown puppy indeed; am I even a toddler on their terms?_

Her blood mellowed out the longer she followed her line of thought, keeping just enough attention on her surroundings to stay with the group and not let anyone know something was amiss.  Touga knew she would have difficulty, didn’t he?  He’d warned her so thoroughly, and she hadn’t listened a bit.  She would say she deserved this, except that they were already well on their way and she had not the slightest inclination to turn back, despite herself.

The nudge at her consciousness came again, but even though she lent some attention to it, a nudge was all it was.  It felt like the presence of Midoriko, but if the priestess engaged her soul enough to speak with her directly, she would collapse into sleep.  That was definitely not an option at this point, so Kagome was left to wonder what the legendary priestess had to say.

What would Midoriko say to her?

Kagome set it on the back burner in her brain, noticing how the procession was beginning to pick up a little speed.  Several of their ranks with flying capabilities were already in the sky, and a hiss met her ears.

In the four days since Sesshoumaru had gone, now five, Ryuuhokuson’s army had truly advanced too far.  Had there even been an attempt at diplomacy?  Kagome felt her doubts kick in, a voice laced with sarcasm in her head saying, “Ah yes, the brilliant diplomat has worked a miracle!  They’re rushing to offer all their lives up to the sword in penance for their rudeness.”

She loved that voice.  It made her life so much funnier some days.

Humor aside though, they were already nearing a plain that could very well become a battlefield soon.  Speed picked up in a hurry; their entire army was silently plowing ahead at a breakneck pace, and the thrill of the hunt came back again a little.  She suspected it was a pack thing—they were together, aiming for a huge prey, working as one for the best of all.  The way the whole group moved together like a single gust of wind through the trees was exhilarating.  It was _gratifying_.

Her human side, if she still had one, would have been mystified at it.  Despite that faint whisper of a memory still lingering, the feral mindset felt so easy to slip in to.  Easy to embrace, enjoy.  The constraints of her pacifistic mind seemed so illogical now that it was easier to simply not recall them at all.  She was sure that was part of the change in her soul—a difference between Kikyou and Kagome, and “Kou.”

It felt like, at that moment, her new name finally carved itself into her reshaped soul.  It brought a deeper meaning to ‘identity’ than she had ever felt before.

The realization settled into her bones so quickly, so solidly, that as the troops pulled to a stop at the edge of a vast plain, ‘Kou’ took to the trees and left her steed behind, the creature stomping and wickering but otherwise making no particular protest to his abandonment.  The foliage was green and thick, and she moved through it with barely a whisper to tattle on her, feet lightly carrying her over the different textures of bark.  She passed the ranks unnoticed until she finally came to rest on a limb just behind her lord, the Dog General.  The great shape of his feral form was already surrounded in light, morphing into his near-human appearance as she recognized Sesshoumaru waiting before him.  The _jyaki_ 2 that spread across the plain was immense, froth with killing intent, accented with anxious tension and the scents of a thousand creatures time would soon forget.  A moment of tremulous clarity told her that battle was imminent - not the kind she had faced by Inuyasha, where she would be protected, but the kind where she would be fighting as fiercely as those beside her.

She would be one of those who would protect something this time.

Trepidation and inexplicable joy warred inside her, but beneath the moonlight she watched her General’s arm drop, and the tenuous reins of her control snapped.  Her muscles, already coiled with restraint, launched her over all their heads, the front of the charge hers in her excitement.

Touga finally caught sight of her.

She’d been ordered to remain behind, but he couldn’t notice her joining in the army’s ranks; her smell was overlain by hundreds of others, no sound particularly noticeable but just enough to create a dull roar in a demon’s ears.

“KOU!!”

She landed at the head of his army that now raced to the battlefield, and his heart seized for a moment.  She was no warrior; he could see her inexperience in the instincts taking over, her mind befuddled by the exhilaration.  She was going to get herself killed!  He turned to his son, who waited for his orders.  Leaping ahead would save no one; so what would his father choose?  Touga’s eyes hardened as he growled, “Go to her, and at least make sure she doesn’t get herself killed.”

A flurry of white and red and Sesshoumaru was on his way.  Over fights, under them, through them at times, he made his way to the head of white hair that seemed to advance at an unearthly pace through enemy ranks.   It was unfathomable, but the enemy seemed to melt away from her, there for a split second and then simply _gone_.

Even as he finally picked up her trail, there were no bodies in her wake.  It was as if she were a ghost and simply passed through without hindrance.

Sesshoumaru met plenty of it; the soldiers were tough-skinned and well trained, and the dragons’ numbers were equal if not greater than their own.  His sword cracked and chipped against their scales, and in the end, he was left no choice but to messily hack his way through the soldiers in his path.  The scents, the movement, the deafening sounds from feet squelching through blood to death cries…in that sensory nightmare, he followed the few clues he could find.  The meandering path seemed like she didn’t have a damn thing in mind…had her instincts really taken over to the point where sense had left her?  What was she hoping to accomplish with her wild dashing?  A serpentine body flung itself into his midsection, ribs cracking beneath the momentum, air escaping his lungs.  The beast was so much bigger than him it nearly put him on the ground, but still, Sesshoumaru stood; with his sword nearly done for, he angled the blade back toward himself, stabbing the creature with all his strength, anticipating the moment the blade snapped off within its carcass.  Leaving it as it was, he simply clawed his way through the ranks,  _dokkaso_ 3 glowing eerie green and unnaturally vibrant in the ugly darkness.

Barely more than a whisper in a quiet room, one shout in the battle suddenly caught his ear; like a ripple on a still lake, what followed it was a wave of gasps before the strangest, most unnatural silence he had ever heard.  Eyes and ears, friend and foe, all turned toward the epicenter, where a pale, pink light sent up a glow that crackled with purity.  A shiver rocketed down his spine, and Sesshoumaru found himself the only one moving in a mass of bodies.  His feet made the only sounds as he ran, slicing creatures from his path.  The purity grew stronger, and where he once thought there was only a light, he could now see a barrier, translucent, reflective, mirroring the ugly scene around it as if mocking them.

In a half-second, he saw the enemy leader dead on the ground, before his remains turned to little more than ash and blood.

Above him stood a human woman, black hair and startlingly familiar blue eyes, and when she turned to him and spoke...she still didn’t break the silence.


	2. Heir

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even though the noise was deafening, it was as if he didn’t hear anything at all. His senses were scattered and confused, fighting against each other with conflicting information. She cast around a worried glance, and as if out of fear for him she moved toward Sesshoumaru and encased him carefully within the barrier she created. Her hands hovered near him as she inspected his injuries in a rush, but the woman didn’t quite dare to touch him.
> 
> Clawless hands. Rounded ears. Softened eyes. The smell of human edged with the scent of decay that followed all of them.
> 
> “Kou…?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another old chapter from over two years ago. TTvTT; Some simple editing has been done, so hopefully, it's not too bad. <3

This was not Kou.  This was a human... Sesshoumaru wanted to tell himself.  Still, the particularly strange blue of her eyes was just the same, now framed by hair with a similarly dark sheen.  She stood over the ashes left from purification, a wild look in her eyes as she sought approval from him, chest heaving with exertion.  Around him, the enemy began to flee with frightful cries filling the air.  


“Ryuuhokuson-sama has been purified!  The enemy is consorting with a priestess!”

Even though the noise was deafening, it was as if he didn’t hear anything at all.  His senses were scattered and confused, fighting against each other with conflicting information.  She cast around a worried glance, and as if out of fear for him she moved toward Sesshoumaru and encased him carefully within the barrier she created.  Her hands hovered near him as she inspected his injuries in a rush, but the woman didn’t quite dare to touch him.

Clawless hands.  Rounded ears.  Softened eyes.  The smell of human edged with the scent of decay that followed all of them.

“Kou…?”

She looked up immediately, and even he could read the motion of her lips as she silently asked, “What?”

“Why are you human.”

For a moment, she had the audacity to look clueless.  Then she examined her nails, groped her ears, and finally yanked chunks of hair before her eyes as if she couldn’t believe it herself.  Sesshoumaru allowed a quiet sigh, relieved.  This was indeed Kou, and she was no different from usual.  Only human.  He discreetly sniffed at her, thankful that, far from his father’s worries, she was completely unharmed.  “What have you done?”

Kou gave him a plain, unimpressed look before gesturing to the ground behind her in a way that plainly responded, “I defeated the enemy.  What else did you expect?”

Kagome was truly thinking,  _Obviously you come after the general and the pawns will scatter.  What’d you think I was doing, picking flowers?_   She took a moment to get a good look at Sesshoumaru, noticing his strangely obvious relief.  While all around them whirled in chaos, he was relaxing bit by bit.  Maybe it was because she’d always been so conscious that he was  _Sesshoumaru-sama_ , but it was only just now that Kagome realized… he looked so young.  

No, if Sesshoumaru from her time was late teens to early twenties, this one looked barely thirteen or fourteen years old…  His face was a little more rounded, his eyes a little wider, and of all things, his knees seemed to have a little wobble of exhaustion to them.  Kagome gave him another look-over, noting how he was a little shorter than she was, and how his kimono —something she thought she’d never see so much as a speck of dust on — was ripped and torn and stained.   _I’m about three hundred years into the past… this much is to be expected.  Demons don’t just_ ** _not_** _age, after all, they’re just late bloomers!_

She shook her head.  No, now was  _not_  the time to be taking casual notes on what he looked like in — what amounted to, at least — his “middle school years.”

The crowds around them were quite dispersed now, stragglers still passing by, wounded and probably near-dead.  Kagome felt sorry for them, honestly… and judging by her current state it was because her human heart was getting more say in things at the moment.  It was months ago that she’d killed… ah, that what’s-his-face soldier… and hadn’t felt a thing.  She didn’t think her conscience had suddenly come running back in the meantime.  Especially not with the sibilant, feral voice that growled and snapped at them, pleasuring in their pain, eager to hunt the weak as prey.

She pulled her eyes away from them, turning back to face the strong youkai in front of her, willing herself to feel like a human just a little longer so the barrier would hold until Touga-sama arrived.  She was fairly sure this state was temporary... no use in the Fates going out of their ways to turn her into a demon if she wasn’t going to stay that way.  The temporarily-human Kagome focused on his power, which was formidable even at his young age; she tried to focus on his ragged breathing as it steadied, on his youki as it began to calm and reach for her, enveloping her like a shroud within her barrier that protected him as well.  She focused on all the things that had awed her from the first time they confronted one another, an event centuries yet to come.

She focused on him so hard that the sudden shattering of her barrier nearly scared the living daylights out of her.

“Kou!  What the  _hell_  were you thinking?”

She breathed, clenching at the heart that had nearly taken off out her mouth at the fright, before turning to see an irked Touga and the raging Souki, now responsible for the painful throbbing in her chest.  With a glare, she pointed toward the rather unidentifiable pile of ashes a couple of meters away, an emphatic stance stating just about what he’d said right back at him: “What the hell do you  _think_  I was doing?”

_No one seems to understand my logic.  Am I flawed, or are they slow?_  she wondered ruefully, frowning as the general crouched to examine the remains and possessions left scattered beside them.  She moved to Touga’s side, tugging at his sleeve and showing expectant eyes.  

“If you’re expecting praise, you won’t get it.  You should have followed orders and  _stayed behind_.”

Neatly flummoxed, Kagome took a moment to gather herself—first her wits, and then her temper—before she turned to storm back toward the castle and apparently, a camp.  Wounded were struggling, dead were being dragged away with the hope of salvation,  _her people_  that she had faithfully protected were hauling themselves to the trampled but otherwise undamaged forest floor.   _I fought to protect these people.  No…not even them.  Just to protect_ ** _you_** _, Touga!  These people are mine, but_ ** _you_** _are what I’ve sacrificed so much for!  You and your sons owe me your lives three times over by now! But ‘you should have stayed behind’?  What the hell!_

She wished she could scream, but even if she tried no one would hear it.  There wouldn’t be any of that cathartic satisfaction that should’ve followed.

It occurred to her then that they’d never made a comment about her apparently human state… and that she could clearly hear the faint beat of a heart in a demon that, just seconds ago, she’d thought was a corpse.  A glance at her nails proved they were claws again.

_So... the second my concentration snaps… or maybe when I stop using my powers?  I guess the access is convenient, but it really throws my soul off balance._

Kagome looked more closely at the demon horse, and pressed her hand over his chest.  The heartbeat was there, but plenty of blood also; the creature was three times her size, and there was very little hope she could carry him to get medical attention.  It needed help and soon, but she would have to physically leave and get someone—something she was loathe to do when the light in its eyes was flickering so weakly.

The longer she gazed at its equine face, lined with battle scars and beautiful, alien markings, the more she was sure this was the steed she left behind before the charge.  It had come so far... for her?  Instead of heeding other instructions or waiting where she left it, it came all the way to the heart of a battle... it was just meters away from where the dragon lord’s ashes were now being scattered by the wind.  The beast was so very close, and this was where it had fallen. She stroked at its matted hair, clotted blood smearing beneath her hand as she assessed his injuries, trying not to become quite so humanly emotional about its plight. Still, green-black eyes looked up at her with pained intelligence, acknowledgment of death, hope for life, and she couldn’t bear to leave it there.  Not like this.  She either needed to kill it and relieve its suffering, find some way to haul it to camp, or devise a way to heal it herself.

A niggling started in the back of her mind.  A squirming, uneasy wriggling that she chose to ignore, hands checking ribs and fluttering around flanks in an attempt to devise a way to carry the beast.  She needed to get its name—surely it had one—but at that moment her attention was again taken by the poor thing pulling open its wounds in an effort to stand, clots of crimson boiling from the gashes to spatter her hands and knees.  Kagome forced it down gently, her faded kimono soon torn to shreds for bandages, the white under-layer clinging to her sweat-drenched back.

Had the air always been this stifling?  So hot, humid and... she stilled, because no, it hadn’t.  It was  _chilly_  when the sun was barely up, and even if it were nearing noon, the change was too drastic.  The air was different.  That niggling, awful sense in the back of her mind that she ignored was urgent now, a knocking; it told her conflicting stories of “Look up, don’t look up!” and with a great amount of trepidation, she made her decision.

The second she looked though, her breath caught.  Her heart stuttered to a halt for an instant, limbs numb and immobile, fear a stunted figment of her atrophied imagination.

Above the battlefield there was a dragon; in its claws were jewels that swirled with clouds of fire and lightning, the colors casting an eerie glow across a serpentine body of near-white scales and ashen fur.  Eyes of deep, shadowy purple gazed down at them with solemnity, sweeping to and fro across their forms... and stopping on her.

Kagome expected him to growl; maybe for fire and brimstone to start raining from the sky, or to be fried by a bolt of lightning the size of Tokyo Station.  He didn’t make a sound though, hovering there as her Touga and Sesshoumaru drew their blades just meters away, ready for an attack... for whatever happened, so they thought.  Before the men could move, that dragon was on the ground, body snaked around her like a living wall, enclosing her with the horse demon that still struggled to live.  She could feel it flinch beneath her fingers, a huff escape its lips; however much it wanted to defend her, it couldn’t possibly move.

It wouldn’t be much of a standoff like this; lessons in hand-to-hand combat didn’t help against an opponent of this size, and Sesshoumaru hadn’t bothered to teach her more than that, damn him.  She was hyperaware of the claws at the ends of her fingers, and how she had no idea what her youkai powers would look or act like.   She was equally aware that no Bakuryuuha or Kazaana was coming to save her.

Despite her periods of humanity, this one she felt the most vividly… and the most pathetically.

Pain lanced through her chest, fear suddenly alive and ravenous, eating her alive together with regret and despair.  It was like being human again; weak and alone, unprotected in the face of an enemy she could do nothing about.  It was facing Mistress Centipede, Mukotsu, Kikyou, Naraku on her own; all her fears of being singled out and left for dead flashing through her head in an instant.  If she hadn’t already been kneeling, her legs would have crumpled beneath her, given out under an overwhelming weight she couldn’t explain.

That strength from the pack hunt was nowhere to be found, here in the confines of a live barrier.  She was alone.

Alone.

Alone.

And it was  _terrifying_.

A great, grey nose came down to her, heated breath like a blowtorch through her thin clothing.  Slitted eyes met hers, firm and intense.  She nearly screamed when it knocked her over, but somehow… somehow, despite the result, he’d been gentle.

It took a moment, but that registered.  The dragon was now whuffling the side of her horse, causing the poor beast some distress at the invasion; a pause was followed by a long blow of air that she was sure blistered her legs.  She winced, unwilling to move away and yet sure she was being burned.  The animal grunted and moaned, too far gone to make much noise at all.

She could hear shouts the other side of their strange world.  Touga and Sesshoumaru… and Souki too, by the sound of it.  It sounded like they were about to attack.  Or maybe they were trying to attack, and were simply unsure of her condition, her position, or quite how to go about something they assumed to be a rescue mission. 

Kagome’s eyes turned to where the dragon blew, his stream of scorching air flowing off the hide of the stricken demon, and it was almost stunning in revelation.

This dragon, for whatever inexplicable reason, was cauterizing the wound.  The breath, at its source, was hot enough to staunch the bleeding without setting the skin to flame.  He, whoever  _he_  was, was helping.

The shouts were becoming more urgent, moving about quickly.  They would be coming soon, but she couldn’t even call out to stop them.  The dragon... he probably didn’t realize that.  He probably thought she wasn’t saying anything out of fear or hate or hope he  _would_  get killed, and the thought gave Kagome a shot of adrenaline she hadn’t anticipated.  She scrambled up from the ground, catching the draconic demon’s eye as she moved toward him, hand reaching with a surety she didn’t quite feel to smooth the scales beneath his enormous eye.  It was all she needed to get his attention, and his attention was all she needed.  

_Alright, time to put my practice with charades to work_ , she told herself, taking a deep breath.  She clawed at her throat with one hand, then pointed over his back in the direction she last heard Sesshoumaru.  Progressing the thought, she ran in that direction and pushed against his side with emphasis.  She needed to tell him.  She needed  _out_ , because she couldn’t  _say_  anything.  

The dog demons circling them needed to see that  _Kou_  was alright, living and in good health, unharmed and rather helped.

The great, white muzzle appeared at her shoulder with a nudge, and she turned back to him, trying to beg with her expression the way she couldn’t in words.  Her hand stroked beneath his eye, and she couldn’t help but feel his expression was gentle and understanding.  He pressed his nose against her cheek first, and then her shoulder, turning her carefully as his coiled body withdrew.

“Kou-sama!”  Souki was the first to lay eyes on her, and despite the ire he and Touga had earned from her not minutes previous, she felt relief when he dashed forward to grip her shoulders, jade green sharply meeting her eyes.  “Are you unharmed? What were you  _thinking_?!”

It was such a relief to hear him nagging, to feel him pulling her away from perceived danger, that Kagome took a moment to lean against him.  As usual, he smelled of leather and horses, but now also of steel, of smoke and blood and sweat.  It was strong and his body was hot and despite the stress and the fright... Kagome found herself all but melting into his unexpecting arms.

“Kou?”

She nodded, mind going blank for a moment.   _Man smell.  Why so relaxing.  Will Souta smell like this when he grows up?_

As much as that thought hurt, because... well, because she couldn’t be sure she would ever  _see_  her brother grow up... she couldn’t wallow forever.  She also couldn’t wallow while the sound of angry dogs filled the background.  Touga and Sesshoumaru’s discordant growls were shaking her out of Souki’s comforting distraction.  When she turned to look over her shoulder, only one important thing really registered.

Instead of a large, white dragon... there was a small, wisp of a boy no older than twelve.  A boy that was about to get shredded if she didn’t cool off her protectors.

It felt like slogging through knee-deep mud, but she managed to pull herself over to them in time, wrapping her arms around the child’s shoulders and all but collapsing on top of him.  She could smell fire and lightning and ashes, but most distinctly... reptile.  That, and the cheek pressed against hers was of a very snakelike texture, smooth and supple and cool to the touch despite the heat around them.

“Kou, what are you doing?” Touga growled, finally calming enough to ask questions.  Kagome was quite thankful the boy could support her weight, because she sure couldn’t at the moment.  It was her level best effort to wave her hand in the direction of her huffing steed, and a sniff in its direction indicated that it was healing quite well now that it wasn’t losing blood by the bucket.  It snorted and whickered softly, but didn’t attempt to move again.

Souki, as a fellow horse demon, apparently got the message, “It appears... the young one has assisted her in treating injuries, my lord.”

The dragon child was all but hidden beneath Kagome, her form awkwardly slumped across his chest and shoulders.  She really  _couldn’t_  budge.  So instead he did his best to rearrange her, thin arms coming up to wrap around her thighs, hoisting her onto his shoulder, not unlike a toddler; her arms wrapped around his neck naturally, and not two seconds passed before finally, she fell into a deep, interruption-proof sleep.  After a few steps and balance checking, dark purple eyes finally found their way over her shoulder.

“If you could point me to your camp, we can discuss this in a more official setting.  She’s a bit heavy.”

***

With Kou on the ground and pillowed by the remains of a tattered pack, the child settled respectfully across from his elders.

“My name is Ryuuseishun; I am Lord Ryuukotsusei’s fifth son.  I’ve come to strike a deal and end this mess.”  He bowed his head politely, eyes unwavering beneath the bright, early afternoon sun.  “I cannot apologize enough for my father’s and brothers’ transgression against the treaty we have protected for so many centuries.”

“What gives you the authority to strike deals with me, fifth prince?  Have all your brothers perished?” Touga asked, barbed tongue greatly changing the inflection of his otherwise neutral, or even sympathetic, words.  The dragonling shook his head.

“No, my lord.  Three have perished, by our hands and by the hands of your mysterious lady here,” he said, indicating Kou with a small gesture.  “However, the third eldest lives; and it is his utmost desire to regain, and in the future improve, the peace between us.  We have a great respect for you, Lord Touga; a respect our father and his scheming never earned.”

The Dog General eyed him critically.  He trusted his nose, and the lad was quite genuine.  There wasn’t a bit of falsehood in him; he was honest and open and brave and firm.  The lord also owed him a boon for the sake of Kou and the steed he saved.  The female would be distraught if she protected him only to have him lost while she was unconscious.  At his side, Sesshoumaru observed them both with great reservation; his father’s decision would be made close note of, a diplomatic highlight for him to learn from.  Souki watched vigilantly from his place next to Kou, his only concern to guard his superiors and kill any aggressors.

The prince, not much younger than Sesshoumaru, bowed low enough to touch his forehead to the ground.

“My brother Ryuuhekijuu has sought for many answers from the seers in our temples; the futures have changed recently, and all that remains is a blur of color and the glow of purification that smells like youki,” he said, and his young, firm voice trembled just a little.  “We did not understand the meaning, but I believe it is connected with your Lady.  She was human, and priestess, but is now a powerful demon.  Inside her soul, she is  _both_ , for no apparent reason.  Please, Touga-sama, our future is tied with her to the extent that we can no longer predict an outcome for ourselves.”

The conversation was suddenly well outside the scope of a war negotiation.  This wasn’t just peace; this was a supplication for help and guidance, and from a female that even the Dog General himself had little working knowledge of.  From a female that he had warned to stay  _home_  of all things, and yet...

And yet it would seem her presence would be the very reason this conflict ended in one half-day battle and with fewer casualties than he had anticipated.  It was all thanks to Kou.

Swearing that she would be the death of him, Touga settled the discussion with, “Then Kou-hime will be your contact.  When she wakes, speak with her.  I have a feeling she knows why your seers are having difficulty.”

With a nod and a word to Souki, Touga stood and marched off in the direction of the medical arrangements, Tenseiga in hand and ready for the possibility of a second round of deaths to negate.  Ryuuseishun lifted his head hesitantly, and clearly at a loss, bid them well before pacing off to a scorched stump; his purple eyes remained on Kou as if a keen vigilance and strict guard of her was the most important mission he had at the moment. 

Sesshoumaru could somewhat understand the sentiment.  Far from feeling protective, he felt wary of this female; she had been in his protection for a full season, and yet he now realized he knew nothing about her.  Temperament perhaps, and weaknesses; but what of her strengths, her history?  The inu youkai was quite sure even his father was ignorant of a great lot surrounding her.

She was creature, and human; both youkai, and miko.  Kou was a mystery that couldn’t even tell them who she really was.  The princeling had no doubt that  _Kou_  was not her name; she could read but not write, and her manner was incongruent with the only station he could perceive her having.  She was a self-contained oxymoron, and the only answers to all their questions were in her head... where, apparently, they would have to stay.

As he moved to start the body count and manage the troops prepared for their next orders, Sesshoumaru glanced again to their young diplomat.  The dragon returned his gaze, sincerity shining through in humble eyes.  The boy presented him a short bow before returning to his watch, and rather than feeling dismissed, the white dog felt deferred to.                                              
  
The result was a strange imbalance that he failed to understand, and so ignored.


	3. War & Pieces

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pardon for the confusion guys; somehow the chapters got scrambled. TT_TT They should be in the appropriate order now.

Upon waking, Kagome was disgusted to find herself still covered in the after-effects of battle; namely blood, soot, dirt, sweat, and a viscous mud comprised of the lot.  Despite their attention to placing her on a rather comfortable pallet and in a rather posh tent with many intricate trappings, the demon miko wasn’t sure if she wanted to thank her stars or strangle them for leaving her clothes as-was.

The sun shone through the canary-yellow tenting and made even the air seem colorful and sunny; the bedding was deep red and made of a sturdy suede leather, which she supposed was the best thing when on a campaign such as they were.  Surrounded by pretty, shiny colors and grody from head to foot, Kagome reconciled disgust with relief and immediately sniffed out the nearest bag of toiletries.

 _Bath.  Bath, then everything else… but definitely bath.  Ewww, I can’t stand this… wait, I didn’t bring other clothi— AH HA!  Souki-sama, I apologize.  You probably won’t get these back._  With a flourish, she pulled out some rather plain training gear; a white gi and dark blue hakama — completely standard-issue for the soldiers she was sure — fell across her arm lightly.  The man was prepared like a Boy Scout, and it made her want to hug him.   _After a bath._

It was the middle of the afternoon, and by the smells, she guessed they were still staying the night.  Fires were burning the flesh of the dead, so she couldn’t have been out more than a day; more appetizing, the smell of _food_ wafted to her nose as she searched for her prize.  The scent of water, beneath a good many other smells, had her hot on the trail of a brook that wended through the trees a little ways off.  There was an outcropping of rock where it burbled down into a pool only about as big around as she was tall, but she didn’t hesitate a bit to strip down and wade in.  The deepest point of the pool was barely to her knees, but Kagome relished the bracing, _fresh_ cold against her skin.  Cloth and soap in hand, she crouched in the water and scrubbed with all her might, starting from her hair and working her way down.  It was mildly revolting to watch her tresses being rinsed, the red of blood, black of char, brown of dirt and several other unsavory bits and colors melting down the strands that returned to pure and simple white.  Her skin wasn’t much different, the yuck and muck sliding off as she scrubbed and rinsed and scrubbed again.

“I’d sing in the proverbial shower, but I don’t think it’d be very satisfying,” she muttered, and even to her own ears, the nonexistent voice was quiet.  Kagome thought she was beginning to forget the sound of it. 

Five months and a little had passed since her transport into history... or rather, into legend.  Five months ago she’d been human, fighting Naraku aside Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, Shippo, Kouga and the _yourouzoku_ , and Sesshoumaru.

Now, Sesshoumaru was the only one left… and he didn’t even know why she felt more comfortable being with him than Souki.  He didn’t know why she wanted to be by his side despite his ill temper... because none of it would happen for another three hundred years.  “It won’t even go down the same way…”

Then she thought about it, rubbing absently at her chest with her soapy cloth.  This was the past… so far back that Naraku didn’t even exist yet, that Onigumo hadn’t been born yet.  Kikyou either… 

The more she thought about it, the more she realized that there were many things that hadn’t happened yet.  Sango’s village was still alive and well if it had even been established; Miroku’s family was yet to be cursed.  Shippo's father was surely still alive and well, but perhaps a little young for mating.  Shiori’s father would still be alive, and killing that _grandfather_ before shit went down was totally viable…

Kneeling in that small pool, her thoughts turned so far inward that her hands eventually stopped.  She could, in theory, use her memories as a template to correct all the wrongs she remembered.  Wrongs like Tsubaki who targeted Kikyou and herself with curses, like the deaths of the villagers caused by the indiscriminate feasting of Kouga’s wolves... she could probably search out Urasue’s kiln even now and destroy the witch before she sought out the ashes of any more dearly departed.

If she was very, very careful, she might even find the Shikon Jewel and end its existence before all the mess could really get started.

 _Am I being too optimistic?  I mean, sure I wanted to change the outcome... we faced hell and got a Pyrrhic victory for our troubles.  Everyone but just a few of us died.  There’s no way I could be satisfied with something like that.  I’m finally **here** , in a place where I can **do** something about it... I’m a different person, a different soul… and this is a different reality... so I’m free to do as much as I want or as little as I can, right? _  Kagome considered the camp just the other side of the tree line where she could smell the burning remains, the bleeding wounds of their soldiers.  

She could catch Touga’s youki on the breeze.

While she was trying to link that to how much she had _already_ changed, Kagome realized that she was also smelling Sesshoumaru and feeling _his_ youki, and he was much too close to be decent. 

Glaring at the tree where she could see his white sleeves fluttering around the edges, she splashed the water sharply in his direction, her aura spiking with indignation.

“Your carelessness is not my fault, only my responsibility.”  

 _That’s a fancy version of ‘Excuse my peeping, but I have to keep an eye on you.’_ The demoness snorted and sloshed out of the basin in a pique.  If there were a way to chew someone out with an aura, she was going to figure out how to do it; in the meantime, she searched her soul for purification powers and sent them sparking his way in displeasure as she dressed.  Kagome ignored the strange fluctuations it caused in her senses by doing so, if only because it was satisfying to hear him hiss and jump at the bite of reiki.   

Sesshoumaru glared at her when she appeared.  The result was negligible, however, once she realized that the little dragon child she’d defended was anchored against the dog’s chest with a large hand firmly covering his eyes.  Kagome stared, then reigned in her aura and did her best to apologize with expression alone, and her attempts at contrition were accepted with a half-baked sigh and a low growl.  

 _Right.  This Sesshoumaru-sama is still that Sesshoumaru-sama…or something very close to him.  He’s not really the type to peep, I guess._  

“Milady?”

The timidly ventured question got both their attentions, and Sesshoumaru tacitly removed his hand from the child’s eyes.  Kagome nodded and crouched a little closer to the dragonling’s eye-level.

“Milady… may I have your name?  I failed to ask earlier, “ he started awkwardly.  Kagome quirked a brow before tapping her throat with a finger, then pointing to Sesshoumaru.  He took up the conversation as the child’s eyes followed.

“We have named her Kou.”

“Can Kou-sama not read or write?” he asked, turning back to her.  The female used two fingers in a ghosting motion over her palm before nodding another affirmative.  “You can _read_ … but cannot write?”

She nodded.

“My name is Ryuuseishun,” he offered.  Adding a bow, he continued, “With Kou-sama’s permission, I would like to remain by your side for the time being.” 

Kagome found herself grinning at him.  He was so _serious_ … a lot like Sesshoumaru, but more humble.  As she straightened up from her crouching, she ruffled his hair gently; his deep purple eyes met hers soulfully, and it made her want to hug him.  He was just about Souta’s height, and his eyes were earnest and curious like Souta’s in a way that was likely more intrinsic than intentional.  It made her feel lonely to see it, but she nodded, offering a hand as she turned in the direction of camp.  He did not take it, instead folding his small hands into his sleeves and making another bow of thanks.

 _He’s so reserved… maybe he’ll loosen up in a little while._  Kagome dropped her hand.

The walk to camp was short, and she made efforts to keep her dirty laundry away from her clean body.  Around the time she made it to one of the funeral pyres, Souki appeared at her elbow to relieve her of the ruined garments and dash them into the blaze.  “You won’t need these.”  

She treated him to a blank stare, cocked an eyebrow, and dared him to explain why that was necessary. 

“They will not wash, milady.  They would never have recovered from battle.  If you wanted to join the fray, you should have worn something more durable.”

 _Point taken.  They weren’t exactly brand-name or anything, but I guess I’m used to repairing clothes after a fray._ Souki observed her briefly as if measuring the worthiness of her new clothes… or her worthiness to wear them.  When it seemed his eyes were traveling northward again, she patted her stomach and made a subtle backward gesture with her chin, which he addressed by saying, “Inutaishou-sama is waiting for you in his tent.” 

“Have our soldiers recovered yet?” Sesshoumaru asked, gold eyes lively in the nearby firelight.  Souki’s face, however professional, seemed to turn a little sour.

“The death rates have decreased, but recovery will likely not begin in earnest until this evening.”

“What is the current loss?”

“Of our 800 troops and 600 beasts, a total 328 have been recorded.” 

Sesshoumaru, stone mask that he usually was, actually made a face.  It was gone in an instant though, and with a nod, he turned on his heels and headed toward the center of camp, Kagome and Ryuuseishun following reluctantly behind.  

Just before they disappeared around the side of a large tent, Kagome turned and watched Souki run a tired hand through his hair, brows knit with frustration; then he was out of sight, and she quickened her steps.  In Sesshoumaru’s peripheral, she pointed to her palm, twisting the finger in a careful, gouging motion.  He was clearly observing her… but Kagome already knew that, despite the amount of time they spent together at Touga’s behest, Sesshoumaru could not read or interpret her well.  He didn’t _want_ to communicate with her and had very little interest in learning how she did so.  Her earlier assessment of his approximately middle-school age came back, and she distinctly recognized the sulky, self-centered attitude that came with the early teen years.

So she tried again, if only just to annoy the hell out of him.

Her motion repeated, she ran a claw across her bottom lip and motioned behind them with a sign that she _knew_ he recognized as an indication for Souki.  The boy sighed, glared, turned his eyes on the ground as he filtered through the equation of her gestures.  She could see him find the answer, his lips thinning and eyes hardening.  They stopped before a large tent with the flaps pinned open, and before they entered he finally answered her.

“Of course it’s precise.  Even one man lost is too many.”

For the first time since she met him, Kagome thought Sesshoumaru might be an idealist on the inside.  Considering what she knew of him — the future him, at least — it didn’t seem even remotely possible.  Still, she could see his stoic features looking cross just enough to make her believe it. 

Touga’s eyes lost a little of their sharpness as they landed on them; she could see the start of crow's’ feet at their corners, and the shadows under his eyes were a little deeper than she remembered.  He wasn’t exactly exhausted, but Kagome got the sense that he was very tired.  It hadn’t been more than a day since the end of that half-day battle, and yet it had put years on his face.  The general sighed and settled further into his seat, and Kagome parked herself next to Sesshoumaru once he took his place.  Ryuuseishun cautiously took a seat opposite her, but perhaps a little closer to the great dog than he would have preferred.

“Recovered a bit now?” Touga asked, in a quieter voice than Kagome expected from him.  With a snarky grin and a fist pump, she made quite clear that all was well; he chuckled softly, motioning to the spread of simple dishes before them.  “Well eat something and finish getting back all that ridiculous energy of yours.” 

She nodded, but waited for the others to dig in first; Touga evinced no signs of having eaten anything before their arrival, and Sesshoumaru and Ryuuseishun probably hadn’t eaten yet either.  Still,  they stared at her and waited.  None of them moved to fill their bowls.  Sesshoumaru averted his eyes when she met them, but continued to wait.  Ryuuseishun did the same.  

  _Okay... is this evidence of the patriarchal society I’ve grown up in?  Wait, no, because it’s still a patriarchal society here... so what the—?_

“Kou, eat.  I’ll honor your valor this time.”  Admittedly, it took that a minute to register.  She stared blankly, head unconsciously cocking to the side as she processed.  The wry smile on his face preceded an explanation she hadn’t asked for, but clearly needed.  “Your actions may have been incredibly careless and thoughtless, but they won us a battle that could’ve been much uglier.  I’ll honor your two parts stupidity and one part valor this time, so don’t rub it in.”

As Touga said that, he pushed a simple but fragrant plate of neatly-roasted meat in her direction.  Kagome gave him a glance with narrowed eyes and pouty lips, pantomimed the nagging she feared her ears would soon grow used to, and snagged a bite that — for all its simplicity — sent a thrill from toes to ears for flavor.

In a silent way she was just beginning to make her own, she shushed all three of them as she filled their plates, then her own.

“You’re hardly taking advantage of your spoils,” the Dog-Lord mused.  Kagome shot him another sidelong glance as she savored the miso soup, and he seemed to get the message.  “You’re going to drag this out, aren’t you.”

 _Should I?  Am I?_ She grinned to herself as the thoughts rolled over and over in her mind.  

Sesshoumaru slipped her some of his meat.  Ryuuseishun tried not to be obvious as he kept her teacup full  Touga continued to eat and observe her while pouting, and all the while Kagome smiled into her food in a way they must’ve have found somewhat ominous and intriguing. 

_I’m saving my favors for a rainy day, gentlemen.  Just you wait._


	4. Laughter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kagome was no longer a time traveler, or the Shikon Miko, or the reincarnation of Kikyou, or a target of Naraku. She no longer traveled on the skirts of society; she was part of it, accepted by it, and they felt free to bring her into them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally finished the last chapter in this arc! QvQ I had a lot of descriptions in this arc that I still like, even now. It's so much fun, exploring the heights and depths of emotions the way this story lets me do. <3
> 
> Hope y'all enjoy; be sure and leave a comment!

The soldiers were light-hearted with the return.  There was still grief and tears over those lost, but the victory was so overwhelming, the terms so strangely in their favor that even those who cried could smile at the giddy joy of some of their comrades.

Kou was  _ thriving _ in this atmosphere, and Souki had to admit it.  She rode the steed that had fought for her, and did her charades with the soldiers, cheered with the happiest of them and cried with the saddest.  She healed the injured and mothered the unmanageable, and above all, she took care of every single demon she met as if they were family.  _ She _ , who was his Lady, who as a dog-demon could be no less than a female of the finest breeding, was getting down in the mud, the guts, and the dirty humor of soldiers as if it was her life’s blood.  Here on the march back, Kou was smiling.

Kou was smiling, and it was  _ blindingly _ brilliant; as if the sun had come out for the first time in months, her face was alight.  Never, from the first time he’d laid eyes on her, had she  _ ever _ smiled so brightly.

More than in all the preceding five months that he had served as her caretaker, Souki found his eyes almost magnetically drawn to her.  Part of him had admitted curiosity, and a touch of admiration, early on; she was strangely concerned with others, yet almost unaware of herself.  She made terrible faux pas that every demon should’ve been cognizant of, but seemed wholly unaware, like a child. Touga-sama treated her like a pup; it was clear to anyone with eyes that she was all but official as pack, yet Kou still seemed to treat herself as a guest in her Alpha’s house.  Sesshoumaru’s rather cursory lessons had barely scratched the surface of what she needed to know.

Like propriety, because much as he found her antics enticing, she was much too willing to touch and be touched by males of any standing.  The scent of soldiers of every breed and race clouded around her body, and he sighed. Touga-sama would surely need to speak to her about it; it was not his place to do so.

Just as he was thinking it, Touga stepped up to his side with a strange mix of satisfaction and exasperation on his face.  Hands on hips as he observed her, he mused quietly, “She’s quite something, isn’t she.”

“I couldn’t agree more, milord.”

“You were probably thinking I needed to curb her familiarity, too, weren’t you,” the dog asked astutely, turning sharp, golden eyes to him.  Souki felt a chill run down his spine. “It’s true that we demons find it unnatural to allow others the amount of familiarity that she does, but Kou sees no such strangeness in it.  I gather touch is much like water to her; she needs it to feel herself. I have every intention of accepting that one as pack, but she is still too uncomfortable with myself and Sesshoumaru to seek comfort in us.  To correct her at this stage would be to cut her off from the touch of others she needs.”

Souki was rarely the target of Touga’s measuring, thoughtful gaze this way, but the most unnerving part of it all was how far his lord had read him.  Had his face really been showing all his thoughts? The Dog General chuckled, and the pressure lightened.

“I won’t oppose you courting her, old friend.  I can hardly object.”

The horse demon attempted to protest, but couldn’t think of anything that wouldn’t sound more jealous than the sentence proceeding it.

***

The midnight moon loomed brightly in the sky when the troops finally marched into the fortress.  While their dash to the border had been swift, their return was prolonged out of consideration for the wounded.  Their arrival at the fortress was met with bonfires and a great deal of celebration.

Bandages and medicine came out in amounts only dwarfed by the food and drink, and the youkai made merry in a way Kagome had never seen before.  The music was festive, and people danced; she could hear the soldiers already practicing embellishments of their tales, leaving little ones in awe and the women flirting in gaggles.  Propriety aside, victory was sweet, and the smiles and laughter were so thick in them that sadness was finally set aside.

They were so happy that few even paid attention when Izayoi, carrying Inuyasha in her arms, dashed out from the castle to meet her mate with a glad smile and a warm embrace.  Souki was a little less grumpy toward her than usual, Sesshoumaru actually tilted his head in her direction, and Kagome… Kagome sprang from her seat, laughing in her silent way, and had to hug them both with a kiss to their foreheads.   _ They’ve come from that wing.  They’ve finally come out! _

Izayoi’s courage was a dangerous thing here, but it was catching and thrilling.  The somewhat impersonal happiness at everyone’s safety now felt so much more real, their  _ victory _ , their  _ joy _ ; the centuries spent in ominous cold war with the Dragon Clans was over.  They were free of it, liberated, and no human in their midst, no scent of half-demon in the air, would stop even the most stubborn from being carried away by the ecstasy of it.

Kagome had never danced in Inuyasha’s time.  Not once, in all the time she’d spent there. Here though, in the aftermath of a battle that she’d had so little stake in, surrounded by people she barely knew in a society even more stubborn than those she’d grown used to…  _ here _ , the infectious glory seized her.

She laughed, and never resisted the urge to dance.

The soldiers that had become so used to her familiarity and touch felt free to guide her candidly through their dancing, leading her as a partner.  Sometimes she played along, dancing as they did, and sometimes she mischievously ad-libbed and danced however she wished. Red fire glowed under the silver moon, taiko and shakuhachi and yokobue and instruments she didn’t even recognize played.  People more than danced — they  _ rejoiced _ .

Kagome wondered if becoming a youkai had affected the way she felt emotion.  Never had she had such highs, such lows; never had she been absorbed in the thrill of the hunt, or had such an uncontrollable urge to dance as she did now.  There was beauty in every chaos, and despite the disorganized hooplas going on Kagome felt in tune with the energy on an intrinsic level. The soldiers, their wives, the children, from the Dog General to the scullery maids, were all tapped into this energy as it moved in them.  

Kagome was no longer a time traveler, or the Shikon Miko, or the reincarnation of Kikyou, or a target of Naraku.  She no longer traveled on the skirts of society; she was  _ part _ of it, accepted by it, and they felt free to bring her into them.  Men grabbed her by the waist and swung her around, made free to touch her as they did all their comrades in arms.  She felt the lingering scents layering onto her body like a warm blanket, infused with the smells of happiness and relief.

Eventually, just as the crowd around the main fire began to thin, Kagome felt Souki’s familiar energy appear at her back.  It lazed around her, relaxed and satisfied in a way she’d never felt before. His pale hands settled lightly at her waist as he leaned in to whisper, “Come, Kou-sama.  There is one last song before daybreak.”

The energy mellowed; happiness and pride welled quietly now, hundreds of people settling next to their closest friends and family, amongst brothers of kind, with kindred spirits.  Kagome was settled next to Souki’s side, and it felt strange to be so close… but the languorous drift of his youki about her was comfortable and inviting.

A warbling voice echoed out of the fire.

Youkai with scales entered each of the fires, and their voices lifted as one; as if the flames amplified their sounds, they echoed in the thin light of dawn.  It was a war story. A ballad, a tale. It was a dirge for the dead, their names called, and their accomplishments sung; in praise, their names were now made part of history in the songs of bards.  There were so, so many. Sometimes the singers would join together in the praise of a single name; sometimes they would harmonize the names of many. Kagome slid her eyes closed as she listened, and let herself lean on the strength of the male at her side.  She could hear his heartbeat, and it timed to the song in an almost meditative pace. It kept the rhythm so precisely that, even more than before, the elegy echoed down to her soul in a way she knew she would never forget.

 

_ And here go heroes _

_      From our glorious midst, _

_ Here go heroes to the glorious Circle of Rin-ne. _

_ And heroes still do here remain. _

 

_ Upon the battlefield, _

_      A talon of dogs waged war, _

_ And beneath her claws, the enemy was crushed. _

_ Beneath her claws, they fled. _

 

Resplendent harmonies twined with the first break of the sun over the horizon, and Kagome’s eyes snapped open in awe.  Her heartbeat, tranquil but seconds ago, shot into overdrive.

They were singing about  _ her _ .  Their war stories now included  _ her _ .

Songs that would be sung about the Dog General, about the Great War Horse, about the Sons of the West — songs from even further into antiquity and into the great unknown of her future told stories of heroes she had dreamed about like fairytale princes as a child and here… here, she had become one of them.

They raised up her victory.  They heralded her strength. They declared her place as a Clanswoman of the Dog General, the Lord of the West.

Kagome had never heard anything so terrifying, chilling and yet thrillingly wonderful in her life.

The song ended as the sun cleared the edge of the sky.  There were no applause or cheers, and the merriment was over… but she felt the distinct energy of satisfaction, of pride.  It filled the people as they smiled quietly now, their brethren remembered, their sacrifice honored. She could feel Souki’s eyes on her, but couldn’t read them.  It didn’t matter for once that she couldn’t speak, because she was speechless. Not sure whether to cry or smile, she did both.

Hiding her face in his sleeve, Kagome just let the moment be.

When she looked up again, the crowd was significantly dispersed.  Touga and Izayoi were gone, as well as Sesshoumaru. Ryuuseishun, who had lingered carefully in the shadows, was also gone.  Souki sat still at her side, eyes still locked on the kaleidoscopic sky. 

In the pastel morning lights, his hair almost looked pink; his eyes were gentle in a way she’d never seen before, and though he’d not moved to touch her since sitting her at his side, she felt wrapped in his presence.  The sneaky feeling that there was  _ meaning _ to this that she didn’t know about was strong.  One day she was going to decipher — or hell,  _ memorize _ — all these haptic signals youkai relied on.  One day.

Today though, she was wrapped in the spoils of valor, sated on the bliss of victory, and sulking Souki was finally smiling.


End file.
